One of the biggest issues for the Mets last year was stolen bases. Now, a considerable amount of the blame in this respect has gone to Travis d’Arnaud, who only threw out 22% of base stealers last season. That’s simply not good, and there is a lot d’Arnaud needs to work on to bring that number back up to the respectable 33% it was in 2015.

In fact, the Mets allowed the most stolen bases in the Major Leagues last season. While much of that blame has been placed on d’Arnaud’s shoulders, Rene Riveraonly threw out 30% of base stealers himself. Heading into last season, Rivera had thrown out 37.1% of base stealers.

Part of d’Arnaud’s and Rivera’s struggles were related to the Mets pitchers struggles holding on runners. Overall, while the Mets pitchers are extremely skilled at keeping runners off the bases, they have not been skilled at hold runners on.

To that end, Steven Matz has decided it was time to do something about it. According to Dan Martin of the New York Post, Matz spent time this past offseason with former Met Scott Rice to work on his delivery to the plate. The end result was debuted in his first start of Spring Training yesterday.

What is interesting is Matz has opted to change his delivery rather than his pick-off move. In what seems to be counter intuitive, Matz is actually taking longer to deliver his pitches to the plate. Matz is leaving his leg hanging during before his delivery thereby giving him the option, at the last possible second, to throw over to first base.

For those that believe it is a balk, it very well might be, but then again so was the moves of pitchers like Andy Pettitte. Overall, the key is repeating the same delivery and maneuver. With that, the balk calls should be at an absolute minimum.

Ultimately, this just might prove effective for Matz, which is good because he needed the help. In his career, base stealers have been successful 23 out of 29 attempts against him. That’s a woeful 20.7% caught stealing rate. Something had to change, and to his credit, Matz did.

An improved and more importantly healthy Matz will be huge for the Mets in 2017.

]]>https://metsmerizedonline.com/2017/03/steven-matz-featuring-a-new-pick-off-move.html/feed/0Syndergaard Named PCL Pitcher of the Week!https://metsmerizedonline.com/2015/05/syndergaard-named-pcl-pitcher-of-the-week.html/
https://metsmerizedonline.com/2015/05/syndergaard-named-pcl-pitcher-of-the-week.html/#commentsMon, 04 May 2015 18:44:54 +0000http://metsmerizedonline.com/?p=180634[...]]]>

And with such perfect timing, Mets top prospect Noah Syndergaard was named the Pacific Coast League’s Pitcher of the Week

I was crossing my fingers for the last 24 hours, hoping to see Syndergaard get recognized for what’s been a remarkable week for him, And making it even more special was being on hand to watch him turn the corner as he has in the last two phenomenal starts.

In his last two outings, Syndergaard has logged 14 scoreless innings giving up only 6 hits and 2 walks with 19 strikeouts. His ERA is now just 1.66.

Congratulations to Noah!!!

May 3

The Las Vegas 51s reeled off their 9th straight win on Saturday night as Noah Syndergaard turned in his second straight dominant performance in the 3-0 victory. He pitched 7 scoreless innings against the Reno Aces giving up just 4 hits and striking out 10. In his last two outings, Syndergaard has logged 14 scoreless innings giving up only 6 hits and 2 walks with 19 strikeouts. His ERA is now just 1.66.

Syndergaard mixed in decidedly more breaking pitches with his 98 mph heat, throwing 65 of his 100 pitches for strikes, and retiring almost as many batters on ground balls as strikeouts. In all he tossed 69 fastballs, 29 curves, and two changeups. It seems like everything is falling into place for the future Mets right-hander.

The Las Vegas offense put up two runs in the bottom of the first inning when Matt Reynolds singled with two outs and stole second. After a walk to Alex Castellanos, back to back singles by Travis Taijeron and Cory Vaughn plated two. That was all the scoring until Vaughn slugged a solo home run to left field to add an insurance run in the bottom of the sixth.

But with Syndergaard’s dominance, and a combined scoreless 8th and 9th from John Church and Scott Rice, three runs were more than enough.

Vegas will go for the sweep of the four game series against Reno on Sunday as lefty Darin Gorski takes the hill. They will vie to win 10 straight and take over sole possession of first place in the PCL Pacific Southern Division from El Paso.

The Orioles have four lefthanded relievers, counting closer Zach Britton, so it’s a possibility, writes Jon Heyman of CBS Sports, who also adds that after the Mets’ interest leaked out in Matusz many other teams became interested.

Of course the Mets have never been one to engage in a feisty competition with other teams for the services of any ballplayer, let alone a reliever set to make $3.2 million.

While the Mets have yet to engage the Orioles at all according to Mike Puma, if they did they’d spend more time trying to get them to eat some dollars rather than exchange player names. And many believe the Orioles could deal Matusz without having to eat any dollars.

So where does that leave the Mets? Basically where they’ve been for the last five months on this issue.

March 22

Joel Sherman of the New York Post confirms earlier reports that Sandy Alderson and the Mets are actively in the market for a lefty reliever for their bullpen.

He proposes a possible deal that would entail the O’s giving Rule 5 pick Logan Verrett back to the Mets so that he could then be included as part of a deal to acquire Matusz.

Verrett is having an excellent spring, as is Matusz, but the Orioles may not have room to keep him on the 25 man roster.

Having the Mets trade him to them would allow the O’s to option Verrett to the minors – something they are prohibited from doing right now.

It sounds like something like this could have legs – especially if it’s true that the O’s are very willing to pay a portion of the $3.2 million that’s owed to Matusz.

March 18

According to Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports the Orioles are open to trading left-handed reliever Brian Matusz, but his $3.2 million salary and remaining year of arbitration likely will give prospective suitors pause.

He adds that the Mets have scouted Matusz, and while the Orioles are willing to include cash in a deal, the Mets may prefer other options, major-league sources told him.

Not exactly sure what those other options are, but I’d bet they cost much less than $3.2 million or even less than $2 million.

Matusz is a starter turned reliever with the Baltimore Orioles, making the switch during the 2012 season. In 2014, Matusz posted a 2-3 record with a 3.48 ERA and 53 strikeouts in 51 2/3 innings pitched.

Matusz is owed $3.2 million for 2015, is arbitration eligible in 2016 and becomes a free agent after that season.

Marc Carig of Newsday reports that former Met Dana Eveland has an opt-out clause with the Red Sox and is unlikely to make their Opening Day roster. He could also be on the Mets radar despite saying they had no interest in him during the offseason.

Asked after Sunday’s game against the Tampa Bay Rays about the lack of production from that quartet in spring-training games, Warthen essentially said that’s what would be expected.

“Most of them haven’t had great production anyway,” Warthen said. “Scotty Rice just came off of a surgery. He’s still finding release points on his sinker, so a lot of them are below the zone. The rest of them, Dario has not been exactly a strike thrower, nor has Leathersich. And it’s really our first time with Gilmartin, so I’m still making observations on him.”

Alderson also said he’s not worried if it turns out he goes into next season with Josh Edgin as his only lefty in the pen.

Additionally, addressing the shortstop situation today, Sandy Alderson said: “We’ve continued to have conversations, but nothing is likely to occur.”

I can see a few more minor league deals with Spring Training invites between now and February 18 when camp opens. But it’s looking increasingly apparent that the Mets have pretty much wrapped up their offseason, with only a potential trade of Dillon Gee remaining if they could find an offer they like.

Speaking to reporters at Citi Field today, GM Sandy Alderson pretty much validated what I suspected a few days ago and said it’s unlikely the Mets sign a second lefty.

“Right now, it’s sign a guy to a major league deal and eliminate all the competition, or sign some minor league deals and create some competition together with what we already have,” Alderson explained.

Alderson said he likes likes the potential competition between recently signed minor leaguer Scott Rice and Rule 5 selection Sean Gilmartin and if nothing comes of it, he’s perfectly OK going with six righties in the bullpen.

There’s a chance, as I mentioned below, that they’ll bring in another lefty on a minor league deal.

December 12

The New York Mets officially announced that they have signed LHP Scott Rice to a minor league contract which includes an invite to Spring Training, with big league team.

Rice, 33, had season-ending elbow surgery on July 23 after making 32 appearances and pitching to a 5.93 ERA and 1.976 WHIP.

He was removed from the 40-man roster in October, but the two sides remained in contact.

With the addition of left-hander Sean Gilmartin via Rule 5 on Thursday, he’ll need to be kept on the 25 man roster or the Mets will have to return him to his former team,

That pretty much gives him a leg up as the second lefty in the Mets bullpen unless he completely flops in Spring Training like Vic Black did last March.

The Mets did meet with at least six lefty relievers during the Winter Meetings including Craig Breslow, Phil Coke and Neal Cotts, but nothing came from any of those discussions and Sandy Alderson later confirmed that there was nothing imminent.

I believe the Mets will try and sign one more lefty reliever on a minor league deal and then have him, Rice and Gilmartin battle it out this Spring. In other words, don’t expect the Mets to sign a lefty reliever to a major league deal.

When your ballclub is cruising toward another mid-70s win season and seeing its attendance in continued decline you try everything you can think of to get fans out to the park.

The Mets have tried promotions like fireworks nights, concerts by name entertainers, and have given bobblehead dolls out of everyone from Ed Kranepool to Joe Biden.

Nothing is working and those fireworks are pricey. So are the prices the club has to pay to bring in a Huey Lewis and those News guys. The Boyz II Men group is another one that needed to be paid like men, not boys.

So when all else fails the team’s approach has shifted to a scary less traveled path: honesty (or their version of it).

Here’s the script of a proposed promo to be read on SNY pleading for fans to come out to Mets games.

“Hi, I’m Jeff Wilpon, one of the owners of ‘your’ New York Mets. My father, my uncle Saul, and I know that you fans have been impatient waiting for our team to get good again. We sympathize and, believe me, want it even more than you do.

It’s clear to us that you would like to see our club’s payroll be higher and we want that too. But to get there we need to have more fans coming out to games. We must all do our jobs in order for us to get to the promised land, the playoffs. And the job for you most loyal of fans is to come out to the games at Citi Field and root your team on.

We want you to know that we have been listening to your complaints in the so-called blogosphere. And even though it may appear we are moving a bit slow for your liking you must admit that there has been movement in the correct direction.

For instance, you made it clear that you didn’t want to come to games to watch pitchers like Scott Rice, Kyle Farnsworth and Jose Valverde. We heard you and now they’re gone. You must admit that we’ve punched up the bullpen from early on in the season.

And more recently you told us and showed us that you had no interest in seeing 40 year old Bobby Abreu or our free agent bust Chris Young out there. We bit the bullet on Young and will pay him for the rest of the year to not be on the team. How’s that for responsive?

And while we still have Ruben Tejada and Eric Young, Jr. on the active roster you have probably noticed how little we are playing them these days.

So think of all this when you consider coming or not coming to Citi during the final month and a half of the season. Think of all the players you don’t like who you’ll now not have to see: Rice, Farnsworth, Valverde, Abreu, and Chris Young.

Next year with a returning Matt Harvey and hopefully a rejuvenated David Wright we look forward to your coming out to the ballpark to see people you want to see. But for now please come out to not see all those folks you don’t want to see.”

Adam Rubin of ESPN NY reports that Scott Rice, was demoted to Vegas after Tuesday’s 6-2 win against the Milwaukee Brewers, leaving Josh Edgin and Dana Eveland as the only left-handers in the bullpen.

Rubin adds that Gonzalez Germen will be activated from the disabled list, where he had been since May 6 with a virus and abscess.

When Rice was given word on his demotion, Marc Carig of Newsday tweeted his response, “I’m obviously not happy. But I understand their decision. I wasn’t getting the job done so they had to make a move.” Rice continued, “I’ll go to Vegas and work my butt off to get back here.”

In 32 relief appearances with the Mets, Rice was 1-2 with a 5.93 ERA in 13.2 innings.

David Wright took the blame for last night’s 2-1 loss to the Cubs at Wrigley Field, telling reporters, “We gave this away.”

The Mets third baseman bobbled a potential double play ball off the bat of Starlin Castro. Then rather than get the lead runner at second base, Wright settled for the out at first, putting the winning run in scoring position with one out in the ninth.

“It just bounced a little more than I thought and it got me in the heel, so I couldn’t field it cleanly,” Wright said.

“It was just one of those ones where you’re thinking two right off the bat. … I’m not sure if we get both outs, but we definitely get the out at second. I wish I could have caught it cleanly.”

Mark Simon of ESPN New York says that the Mets are dead last in the majors in the double-play component of Defensive Runs Saved, also stating, “And it’s not close either.”

The Mets went on to lose the game on Nate Schierholtz’s walk-off RBI single against Scott Rice, and while that was aided by Wright’s flub, the Mets squandered plenty of scoring opportunities long before the ninth inning rolled around.

In probably one of the most satisfying wins thus far, the Mets, backed by superb pitching and spectacular defense, narrowly shut out the Cardinals, 2-0. While the offense was not overwhelming, they were able to work Cardinals’ starter Tyler Lyons enough to knock in two runs and draw four walks. it was a much needed victory for the Metropolitans, who are experiencing many difficulties winning at home.

Jenrry Mejia put together a spectacular outing, going 6.2 strong innings with seven strikeouts and three walks. His placement and command were exceptional, and his offspeed and breaking pitches were downright nasty. He started off extremely strong, letting up only two hits through the first five innings. When trouble began brewing in the sixth after two walks,

Mejia did a marvelous job pitching his way through the inning to coax the popups and the double plays when needed.

Ruben Tejada had a monster day in the field, making a few gorgeous diving stops and starting two critical double plays including this one in the fifth inning in which he pairs with Daniel Murphy to wow the crowd:

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Last night’s win could easily be credited to the admirable defensive display put on by infielders Tejada, Murphy, Josh Satin and David Wright. In the sixth inning, Mejia made sure to give a fist bump to all four of them before departing the mound after Terry Collins replaced him.

The Mets defeated the St. Louis Cardinals by a score of 2-0 on Monday night at Citi Field. Debuting their camouflage uniforms that will be worn for five Military Monday night games throughout the season, righthander Jenrry Mejia opposed Cardinals southpaw Tyler Lyons.

What you should know:

Jenrry Mejia looked sharp right out of the gate, pitching 6 and 2/3 innings, while striking out 7 and only allowing 4 hits. He ran into a bit of trouble in the 7th inning, but was bailed out by Scott Rice, who induced a ground ball to end the inning.

Tyler Lyons also looked good for St. Louis early, allowing 2 runs on 6 hits, but was on the wrong end of a tightly contested game.

Travis d’Arnaud went 2-for-4, just missing a home run in his first at bat, and driving in a run in the 6th inning.

David Wright continued his hot hitting, extending his hit streak to 12 games, the third longest current streak in the major leagues, and also drove in a run, going 1-for-4 on the night.

Curtis Granderson‘s woes continued as he went 0-for-3 with three strikeouts and a hit by pitch.

Ruben Tejada showed flashes of Andrelton Simmons in the field Monday night, making two spectacular plays with the leather, including a double play that will be soon be seen on Baseball Tonight’s Web Gem segment.

The Mets went 3 for 7 with Runners In Scoring Position tonight, as opposed to 0 for 10 yesterday afternoon.

Bartolo Colon, who the Mets signed to 2-year $20 million dollar contract this winter, will finally start his first game of the spring when he faces the Miami Marlins today at Tradition Field, at 1:10 pm.

Colon, has been slowed in camp by a calf issue, but after watching him walk around the Mets clubhouse on Sunday, he looked ready to go.

Adam Rubin shared a bit of insight this morning when he wrote that Terry Collins understands that given the limitations of Ruben Tejada, the team could use a backup shortstop with some offensive capability. Collins has wondered aloud if Wilmer Flores could serve in that role.

However, Rubin believes it is more than likely that Anthony Seratelli gets that nod over Flores or Omar Quintanilla, and I agree with him.

It already appears that this Spring Training edict by Collins to get Wilmer Flores a lot of time at shortstop was nothing more than a mirage or perhaps a ploy to get the Stephen Drew camp to believe the Mets were moving on without him as one MMO reader pointed out last night.

Another issue is why in the world would Flores be considered for a bench role at the age of 22? What organization would even consider something like that for one of their top offensive prospects? Hopefully, not ours.

Enter Seratelli whose seems to be in the right place at the right time…

As MMO’s John Bernhardt pointed out last week, Seratelli has several assets the Mets like. He’s a switch hitter with the versatility that is a valued commodity in a utility player.

In trying to do everything possible to catch on with a team, he has equipped himself to play every infield position as well as both corner outfield spots.

Also, he’s right in line with the front office on-base philosophy as his .276/.372/.418 slash in over 3,200 minor league plate appearances would attest.

“I’m very proud of my on-base-percentage. I feel it gets overlooked a lot,” Seratelli told Ken Davidoff last week. “But, its been brought up quite a bit here, which I’m happy about. I know that the Mets are high on that. I hope that makes me help the team.”

Bernhardt continues:

Last season it was Scott Rice who charmed New York baseball fans with a grit an determination that saw him finally make his major league debut after pitching for 14 years in the minor leagues. Rice’s rises to Flushing drew howls from the skeptics, but the lanky lefty won over most Met fans with his impressive outputs out of the bullpen.

Rice’s story line differs from Seratelli. Rice entered professional baseball as a highly regarded first round draft pick in 1999 but injuries and bad luck slowed his progress. At no point in his baseball career has Seratelli drawn the raves and attention that Scott Rice once enjoyed. It’s the iron will, the stubborn perseverance, and the refusal to give up on a dream that links the two determined Mets.

It’s another interesting story line to follow this Spring from Port St. Lucie. But as far as Flores being relegated to the bench? Two thumbs down on that. Give it to Seratelli and bring Flores up when you create an everyday job for him.

Ken Davidoff has a column in Friday’s post that will leave “Negative Nellie” Met fans howling. Davidoff features a utility infielder, a local kid from New Jersey, who signed a minor league contract with the Mets over the winter, was invited to camp, and as Davidoff sees it, has a legitimate chance to make the team coming north in April.

This could be baseball’s “feel good” story of the 2014 season. His name is Anthony Seratelli. He’s a scrappy, 31-year old infielder who has been fighting for recognition and respect on the baseball diamond since he first wore a glove.

Seratelli was cut from his Old Bridge High School baseball team as a freshman. Overlooked by college recruiter’s everywhere, Seratelli walked on the the field at Seton Hall and made the team. The pattern of overlooks and disappointments continued when Seratelli attracted no major league notice during the draft.

But, Seratelli loves the game of baseball, and his uneven path finding his way up baseball’s ladder steeled him to take nothing for granted and to search for alternative means to prove he could play.

That alternative path saw Seratelli spending a year formally out of the game after graduating from college before playing in 2006 for the Windy City ThunderBolts of the Frontier League. Seratelli’s play in an open tryout at the Kansas City Royals complex caught the eyes of some Royal personnel and at long last, on his 24th birthday, the persistent infielder signed his first contract to play professionally.

Nothing has come easy for Seratelli over seven years in the Royals system. Slowly and painstakingly, the gritty Seratelli has moved up through the system from Rookie-level ball in the Pioneer League all the way to Triple-A in Omaha where he played in 2012 and 2013. As Davidoff aptly put it, Seratelli was too good a player to cut loose but not quite good enough to earn a spot on the 40-man roster.

“I’ve been beaten down. I just keep trying to get there,” Seratelli told Davidoff.

This winter, the Mets were one of two teams (Tampa Bay was the other) to inquire about Seratelli’s services. With the Mets fluid shortstop situation, Seratelli liked his odds of turning heads in Port St. Lucie when Terry Collins indicated the team would like to give him a look at shortstop during spring training.

Both Terry Collins and Sandy Alderson have mentioned his name at spring training camp, a sign that Collins is true to his word. Alderson noted the Met brass likes Seratelli’s profile.

Seratelli has several assets the Mets like. He’s a switch hitter with the versatility that is a valued commodity in a utility player. In trying to do everything possible to catch on with a team, he has equipped himself to play every infield position as well as both corner outfield spots. Davidoff notes Seratelli’s plate discipline as proven by the .276/.372/.418 numbers he’s posted in over 3,200 minor league plate appearances. And, Seratelli runs the bases well swiping 184 bags at an impressive 80.7 success rate.

“I’m very proud of my on-base-percentage. I feel it gets overlooked a lot,” Seratelli told Davidoff. “But, its been brought up quite a bit here, which I’m happy about. I know that the Mets are high on that. I hope that makes me help the team.”

Last season it was Scott Rice who charmed New York baseball fans with a grit an determination that saw him finally make his major league debut after pitching for 14 years in the minor leagues. Rice’s rises to Flushing drew howls from the skeptics, but the lanky lefty won over most Met fans with his impressive outputs out of the bullpen.

Rice’s story line differs from Seratelli. Rice entered professional baseball as a highly regarded first round draft pick in 1999 but injuries and bad luck slowed his progress. At no point in his baseball career has Seratelli drawn the raves and attention that Scott Rice once enjoyed. It’s the iron will, the stubborn perseverance, and the refusal to give up on a dream that links the two determined Mets.

]]>https://metsmerizedonline.com/2014/02/anthony-seratelli-has-real-shot-to-making-big-league-team.html/feed/64Jeff Walters Has A Solid Chance To Make Opening Day Bullpenhttps://metsmerizedonline.com/2014/02/jeff-walters-has-a-solid-chance-to-grab-opening-day-bullpen.html/
https://metsmerizedonline.com/2014/02/jeff-walters-has-a-solid-chance-to-grab-opening-day-bullpen.html/#commentsFri, 07 Feb 2014 14:25:54 +0000http://metsmerizedonline.com/?p=147471[...]]]>A Mets insider told Adam Rubin of ESPN New York that pitching prospects Jack Leathersich and Jeff Walters are candidates to make the opening day roster and fill out the Mets bullpen. Rafael Montero or Cory Mazzoni were also not ruled out.

We have several original MMO articles spotlighting all four of these players in great depth and detail. And earlier this week we projected that Walters has the best shot of making the club with Leathersich still needing some seasoning before he eventually gets the call as well.

Me and many of my colleagues at MMO do not see Montero serving in a relief role at this time regardless of what’s been speculated by other outlets.

With the disastrous way in which Jenrry Mejia was handled still fresh on their minds, we doubt the Mets would take the number two pitching prospect in the system and throw him into the bullpen.

While Rubin says the Mets bullpen is light on lefthanded relievers, I would argue that Scott Rice pulled his weight just fine last season and that Josh Edgin ended the season with some signs of dominating before being lost for the season to injury.

Mazzoni is a different case. MMO projected that he profiled as a reliever last March. We still feel the same way a year later. However, we’re not quite sure that the righthander is ready to make the jump from Double-A to the majors just yet.

I’ll continue to stick with Walters as the favorite to make the team and my confidence is fueled by the fact that of the four, he’s the only one on the Mets 40 man roster.

]]>https://metsmerizedonline.com/2014/02/jeff-walters-has-a-solid-chance-to-grab-opening-day-bullpen.html/feed/4Mets Bullpen Will Be The Best We’ve Seen Since 2006https://metsmerizedonline.com/2013/12/mets-bullpen-will-be-the-best-weve-seen-since-2006.html/
https://metsmerizedonline.com/2013/12/mets-bullpen-will-be-the-best-weve-seen-since-2006.html/#commentsFri, 20 Dec 2013 17:50:11 +0000http://metsmerizedonline.com/?p=135787[...]]]>

While talking to the us at Citi Field on Tuesday, Sandy Alderson said that Bobby Parnell would be ready for Spring Training and that he doesn’t anticipate any problems.

Parnell, who is recovering from surgery to repair a herniated disk in his neck, has regained all the weight he lost, is feeling great and was in town for a routine checkup this week.

All in all, some great news for the Mets as it puts less of a demand on pursuing a late inning reliever on what is an over-priced free agent market. That should preserve some money for other pressing needs, but more importantly the Mets won’t have to scramble to find a temporary closer or rush a younger pitcher into a role he may not be ready for.

The 2014 bullpen is starting to take shape and unlike past offseasons where Sandy Alderson felt the need to do a full revamping, this current group seems to be full of potential. I like what I see.

Here are my pre-season thoughts on the Mets bullpen…

Bobby Parnell, RHP – The hard-throwing righty seized the closer’s role after Frank Francisco couldn’t start the 2013 season. Parnell had a fine campaign before his injury, posting a 2.16 ERA and 1.00 WHIP while notching 22 saves for the Mets in 49 appearances. The good news is that he’ll be ready for spring training and we look for him to have a big year and his first 30 save season.

Vic Black, RHP – The 25-year old righthander fared very well in his short stint with the Mets last season. Black posted a 3.46 ERA and a 1.15 WHIP while going 3-0 and earning his first career save in just 13 appearances. The Mets are very high on Black and he’ll be the primary setup man for Parnell in 2014, with even a few save opportunities thrown in for good measure. He’s gonna be a good one.

Scott Rice, LHP – After spending his first 14 pro seasons in the minors, Rice made his MLB debut in 2013 and was nothing short of spectacular holding lefthanded hitters to a .174 batting average and a .468 OPS. Rice was on pace to shatter the Mets record for appearances before undergoing season-ending surgery for a sports hernia. The 31-year old made 73 appearances for the Mets and tossed 51.0 innings. An amazing 60.3% of the pitches hit against him were grounders. You can bet he’ll be back and hopefully he won’t be abused by Collins the second time around.

Carlos Torres, RHP – Nobody even expected Torres to make the team and yet he became one of the more indispensable role players on the team, whether he was making a spot start, pitching 2-3 innings of relief, or coming in to get a big out. He finished the season with a 3.44 ERA and a 1.12 WHIP and his spot in the bullpen as the Mets’ swingman is all but guaranteed.

Gonzalez Germen, RHP – He made his major league debut at age 25 last season and delivered a very uneven performance. At times he shined on the mound and looked dominating, and at other times he left too many fat pitches over the plate. In 29 appearances he posted a 3.93 ERA with a 1.39 WHIP, with a 8.7 K/9 and a 4.2 BB/9. He showed enough promise to make him a lock for the bullpen, but clearly he’ll have to show marked improvement if he wants to keep his spot with other young arms knocking at the door.

Josh Edgin, LHP – After a brutal start to his 2013 season, which included a demotion to Double-A Binghamton in April, Edgin came roaring back his second time around and displayed the stuff and the swagger we saw from him in his rookie season. He posted a 0.93 ERA over his final 23 appearances before suffering a broken rib to end his season. He finished the season with a respectable 3.77 ERA in 34 appearances. He’s a lefty who throws mid-nineties and should be back.

Jeurys Familia, RHP – The one time top prospect for the Mets had his season washed out due to surgery to remove bone chips from his elbow. He’s still young and has loads of potential, but it’s time for him to start strutting his stuff. He made the club out of spring training last year, but unless he dazzles in camp that may not be the case this season.

Long Shots – The Mets have a nice little arsenal of young pitchers on the rise who could debut at some point this season and maybe even make the team out of Spring Training. My favorites to make the team are 25-year old righthander Jeff Walters who posted a 2.09 ERA and led the Eastern League with 38 saves, and Jacob deGrom, also a righthander, who could transition from starter to reliever in 2014. On the bubble are Cory Mazzoni, Darin Gorski and Jack Leathersich, but not until they earn their stripes in Las Vegas.

Outlook – I consider the Mets’ bullpen to be one of their greatest strengths in 2014 and certainly one of the best pens we’ve seen since the 2006 season. We have some solid young arms that all seem to be suited for the various roles that comprise a major league bullpen. Parnell is a solid closer who can be counted on, Black looks like he’ll be a dominant setup guy, Rice is the best LOOGY in the NL East, Torres was also among the best swing men in the league. Edgin and Germen lengthen the pen and we’ll see how the final one or two spots shake out in Spring Training. All in all, this should be a bullpen we can all be proud of. LGM

In the three seasons since Sandy took over, we have seen a continuous theme of signing veteran players to minor league deals for the soul purpose of acting as a stopgap while the club’s younger internal options develop. More often than not, these acquisitions have favored the veterans, resulting in the prospects starting the season in Binghamton, Buffalo or Las Vegas; and staying there.

When speaking with Sandy Alderson Tuesday at Citi Field; however he seemed more interested in giving his young talents the opportunity to break camp with the team, in particular the fifth spot in the starting rotation.

“We want to preserve a situation where our young guys have a chance to compete for that spot,” said Alderson, responding to a question from Ed Marcus of MMO regarding his plan for the final starting job. “It’s not like we only have one candidate, we’ve got several guys who theoretically could compete for that spot and we don’t want to artificially depress their opportunity.

“So I would say if we bring veterans in we’ll bring them in towards competing with the young guys we have and if the veterans succeed in the competition then our guys go down, if not we have the flexibility to use more of our young guys. You don’t want to use too many young guys to fill holes because then we don’t have any depth going into the latter part of the season.”

One area of the team that has yet to be addressed to this point this winter has been the bullpen, which certainly needs a bit of a makeover by winter’s end. Following up with his aforementioned comments, I asked Alderson if he had the same mentality for the bullpen as he does for the fifth rotation spot, in which case he didn’t seem as open to having his ‘young guys’ in the ‘pen come Opening Day.

“If you take Bobby Parnell out of the bullpen, there’s not a lot of experience there,” said Alderson, thinking over his current relievers. “I’m not sure there’s anybody that in that ‘pen right now that we are looking at that’s actually pitched a full season at the big league level if you just look at the guys on our roster right now. I may be wrong about that but I think that’s right.

“So that has to be an issue; but I think we have time to address that, certainly we can address the experience issue and see what’s available to us by trade and free agency as well.”

Outside of Scott Rice who pitched in 73 games in his rookie campaign last year, Alderson is right; the Mets need some experience in the bullpen. Whether that experience comes via a trade involving a first baseman, or a free agent acquisition, those ares will get perhaps more than their fair shot at making the team out of Spring Training.

Either way, I think the difference in Alderson’s rationale this season is that the Mets young pitching is more developed, and he has the ‘flexibility’ to infuse veteran talent with his own internal options, options he has been working to produce for the better part of three years now.

]]>https://metsmerizedonline.com/2013/12/alderson-wants-to-give-young-pitchers-the-chance-to-compete-for-roster-spots.html/feed/0Mets Should Forego Free Agent Relievers And Give Young Arms A Shothttps://metsmerizedonline.com/2013/12/mets-should-forego-free-agent-relievers-and-give-young-arms-a-shot.html/
https://metsmerizedonline.com/2013/12/mets-should-forego-free-agent-relievers-and-give-young-arms-a-shot.html/#respondMon, 16 Dec 2013 18:45:59 +0000http://metsmerizedonline.com/?p=135666[...]]]>The Mets may consider converting minor-league righthanded starter Cory Mazzoni into a relief pitcher in Spring Training, a switch suggested by our own Binghamton Mets beat writer John Bernhardt since September. Adam Rubin posted the news on Twitter and said that Mazzoni would get a chance to make the Opening Day roster.

Mazzoni, 24, was plagued by a hamstring and elbow injury last season and only made 12 starts spanning 64 innings. He went 5-3 with a 4.36 ERA and 1.348 WHIP for Double-A Binghamton, while striking out 74 (10.1 K/9) and walking just 19.

The 2011 second rounder throws gas (ranges at 94-95, reaches 97) and could prove to be effective out of the pen as John has stated, and along with B-Mets closer Jeff Walters, the two could give the Mets a pair of young quality arms that could prove just as good as some of the relievers left on the free agent market.

It’s not even Christmas, but it’s not too early to start looking at the bullpen for 2014. The 40 man roster currently has eight relievers. There are 6 or 7 open spots come Opening Day.

Sandy Alderson is said to be looking for at least one late-inning reliever. Anthony DiComo of Mets.com reported that the Mets are satisfied with their young core of Bobby Parnell, Vic Black, Jeurys Familia and Gonzalez Germen, and that Alderson does not plan to completely overhaul the bullpen for a third straight winter.

They do, however, hope to add a veteran arm into the mix, ideally to replace the quality innings that LaTroy Hawkins gave them in 2013. The list of candidates is long, and it would not be surprising to see the Mets wait until January to fill this need.

The Mets could add a reliever via a trade or free agency depending on how soft or robust he finds the market when he arrives in Orlando for the Winter Meetings later today.

Lets examine the relievers we have on the 40 currently…

Vic Black RHP – The former 49th overall pick from the 2009 draft that was acquired from the Pirates in that trade for Marlon Byrd and John Buck has the Mets brass excited. Vic had a 3-0 record with a 3.71 ERA and one save in 18 games with the Pirates and Mets. He struck out 63 in 46 2/3 innings in AAA for the Indianapolis Indians prior to the trade.

Josh Edgin LHP – The first of the 2010 Mets draft class to make it to the majors. He appeared in 34 games out of the pen for the Mets in 2013 and another 16 games in the minors. He threw a combined 47 1/3 innings in 2013, but ended the season on the DL with a fractured rib. He’s expected to ready for Spring Training.

Jeurys Familia RHP – The young righthander spent most of 2013 on the disabled list, pitching in 9 games for the Mets and an additional 8 games in the minors for a combined 19 2/3 innings with 15 strikeouts and 12 walks. Familia is 100% and just completed a stint in the Arizona Fall League.

Gonzalez Germen RHP – Germen turned many heads after his callup last season and the Mets expect big things from him. He split 2013 between AAA Las Vegas and New York, appearing in a combined 64 games with 78 1/3 innings.

Bobby Parnell RHP – Neck surgery ended his 2013 season early, but before he went down Parnell was having his best season as a pro, The 29-year old righthander pitched in 49 games, going 5-5 with an ERA of 2.16, a WHIP of 1.00, and totaling 22 saves. He struck out 44 in 50 innings.

Scott Rice LHP – The late-blooming rookie proved to be consistently good and very durable before undergoing a season ending sports hernia surgery in September. The crafty southpaw pitched in 73 games out of the pen and in 55.1 innings posted a 3.71 ERA and allowing just one home run all season. He held lefthanded batters to a .171 batting average.

Carlos Torres RHP – The swingman 30-year old veteran had a career year for the Mets, making 33 appearances in 2013 including nine emergency starts. In a combined 45 games at MLB/AAA (21 starts), he threw 158 innings, but notched an impressive 3.44 ERA and 1.11 WHIP in the majors.

Jeff Walters RHP – An MMO favorite, Walters has yet to appear in a Major League game, but he had an excellent 2013 campaign as Binghamton’s closer. He pitched in a record 53 games with a league-leading 38 saves to go with a 4-3 record, an ERA of 2.09 and WHIP of 1.11, and a dominating 60 strikeouts in 56 innings pitched. Big things are expected from the 2010 7th rounder.

The New York Mets showed some slight improvement last season in the bullpen after having the worst bullpen in the major leagues in their two previous seasons.

The Mets ranked 27th with a .259 opposing batting average, 30th in strikeouts, 25th in WHIP and finished 22nd with a 3.99 ERA.

Among the 12 relievers to appear in 15 or more games for the Mets last season, righthander Greg Burke ranked last with a 1.83 WHIP and 5.68 ERA in an appalling 32 appearances. Opposing offenses torched the 31-year old for a .312 batting average, allowing 43 hits and 15 walks in 31.2 innings.

You would think that would spell the end for his short and disastrous Mets tenure, but in fact the Mets are interested in re-signing him to a minor league deal, according to Adam Rubin of ESPN New York.

The question of course is why? I didn’t realize we were that hard up…

The fact is that once the Mets started to play their own younger and internal options, the bullpen started to perform infinitely better in the second half of last season.